After U.S. tour, Ishikawa yearns for more distance

After spending five consecutive weeks competing in the United States, Ryo Ishikawa has honed in on what he needs to improve to become more consistent on the PGA Tour.

"It was like solving a mystery every time on how to conquer the course and look for winning opportunities," Ishikawa wrote in a column for The Asahi Shimbun. "Every time I played, I realized what skills I needed to polish."

Ishikawa was pleased with his shotmaking ability, as well as the small increase in distance from a more intense strength-training regimen. The 20-year-old from Japan, however, realizes he will never be one of the game's longer hitters.

"I wish I could hit 20 or 30 yards farther like the big hitters on the PGA Tour. But I think that’s just a dream," he said. He added, "I had long been wanting to drive the ball as far as possible and use the shortest club possible for my second shot because I lacked confidence in my long irons and mid-irons. In a way, I had been running away from my real problem."

Earlier this season, Ishikawa finished second in the Puerto Rico Open - his best finish on American soil. During his five-week run, he missed three cuts with a best finish of T-9 at the Memorial Tournament. Though he did not fare as well as he would like, Ishikawa returned home encouraged.

"I don’t think I’m in a place where I have no chance of winning," he said. "I can finally see concrete issues I need to work on, and I look forward to the next tournament."

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About the author

Ryan Ballengee

Ryan Ballengee is founder and editor of Golf News Net. He has been writing and broadcasting about golf for over a decade, working for NBC Sports, Golf Channel, Yahoo Sports and SB Nation. Ballengee lives in the Washington, D.C. area with his family. He used to be a good golfer.

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